NEWSLETTER
It was a good day for souvenir fans at Wrigley Field yesterday, as Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant went deep a few times, stamping some baseballs with their bats.
Rizzo kicked things off with a rocket homer to right field (via @Cubs):
A sophisticated heat beam which we call a “laser.” pic.twitter.com/YYUP8dqW7r
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 7, 2017
Wow, that had some heat on it. Look how it ricocheted off of the wall facing!
It’s no surprise that it was a low, high exit velocity bullet:
— Cubs Exit Velocity (@cubsexitvelo) July 7, 2017
That was Rizzo’s 20th homer of the year, and it sets him up for a cool feat:
Anthony Rizzo (20 HR, 54 BB, 42 K) can be first #Cubs player with 20 HR & more BB than K before All-Star break since Billy Williams in 1970
— Christopher Kamka (@ckamka) July 7, 2017
Not to be outdone by his Bryzzo Souvenir Company cofounder, Bryant decided to go deep twice on a day when the wind was blowing in.
Bryant’s first homer on the day was a monster shot that cared not about the wind (via @MLB):
.@KrisBryant_23 nearly got up and out of Wrigley. pic.twitter.com/0cgnCoCDLs
— MLB (@MLB) July 7, 2017
That baby went 427 feet, but it was very nearly matched by Bryant’s homer later in the game, which he hit just a little too hard (via @MLB):
.@KrisBryant_23 was a double shy of the cycle.
He’ll be OK with this instead. pic.twitter.com/IwQlom87G1
— MLB (@MLB) July 7, 2017
I joke, of course, about Bryant hitting his homer too hard, but if had been about 30 feet shorter, it might’ve caromed off the wall for a double, which would have given Bryant the Cubs’ first cycle since Mark Grace in 1993.
In the end, I don’t think anyone will be complaining about a day for Bryant that featured two homers, a triple, and a single. In one day – halfway through the season, mind you – Bryant raised his slash line from .261/.391/.502 (134 wRC+) to .271/.397/.534 (142 wRC+).
Ding-ding-ding! A good day for dingers.
No cycle for @KrisBryant_23, but how about a two-homer game?#KBOOM! pic.twitter.com/Vbp50aICDe
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 7, 2017
